BILLIONS to be SLASHED from UK aid budget as Mordaunt hatches radical new investment plan

BILLIONS of pounds of taxpayers’ money is to be slashed from the UK's foreign aid budget, as International Development Secretary Penny Mordaunt prepares to instigate a radical plan to implore private investors to foot the bill instead.

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“Penny believes that means when investors step in, the taxpayer can step back, freeing up billions to spend elsewhere in Government.”

Ms Mordaunt will argue in a speech today the renewed strategy is the only feasible way to ensure the UK’s colossal £13billion aid budget remains sustainable amid increasing pressure on stretched Treasury funds.

Ms Mordaunt, who is among those touted to be a future Tory leader, plans to persuade the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) to reform rules on aid spending - known officially as official development assistance (ODA).

The OECD currently states: “ODA is defined as government aid designed to promote the economic development and welfare of developing countries.”